Data backup is not something that most people consider to be important. Think of it as an insurance policy for everything your business needs to survive. We actually offer data backups as a service, but their importance is often overlooked. Here are the top five reasons you should use a backup copy.
Many businesses keep financial records for long periods. Usually, it's for regulations and tax purposes. Assuming your computer has you covered is a huge mistake. You should always have more than one copy. Having an offsite backup of information is essential and can save your hide if something goes wrong. The IRS has never cared if companies had disasters. They'll think you're not compliant and fine you.
Quite often, people make mistakes. Humans are not infallible. Every day people open emails with viruses accidentally, and important files get deleted. If you take incremental snapshots before a virus happens, you can restore them to a snapshot. If a file gets deleted, you can perform recovery from before the deletion occurred. You can prepare for the little things that happen with added protection, as well as big things.
The most important rule to working is to do it right the first time. Even suffering a minor failure can cause massive disasters. Without backups, you may be able to recover some information, but you'll never know what it will be. Projects you've been working on for months just vanish into thin air. Even worse, a significant loss could have you doing all of your work over.
Backing your data up always has its competitive advantages. The first business back running after a disaster takes all the business of those companies still down. Depending on how critical the disaster is could mean the doors to your business never open again. FEMA asserts that nearly 40 percent of small businesses fail to reopen after being hit by a natural disaster. Having a plan will keep your doors open for clients who left companies that didn't survive the data disaster.
A study was conducted in 2017 by the University of Texas that showed that 43% of businesses suffering significant data loss never recovered. Those are very high numbers. Within two years of a major loss, most of these companies close their doors. Large information losses don't always result in disaster. Humans can destroy businesses by oversights and mistakes. Having a data backup plan mitigates threats. Thinking ahead helps cushion the fall of a vast threat.
